Description

The nobleman Kain has been slain by a group of bandits and in his death, he is revived by the necromancer, Mortanius for his own ends. Kain is returned in the form of a vampire and yearns to exact vengeance on those who had killed him. Stronger and faster than a human being, coupled with a thirst for blood that must be satisfied regularly, he is able to dispatch his killers quickly. However, Mortanius and other forces seek to use him a tool in a greater plot. Mortanius is of the Circle of Nine, the guardians of the Pillars of Nosgoth. These pillars, the center of the world and balancing the forces, have become corrupted and the Circle members been driven mad. At the Pillars, Kain meet Ariel - a former guardian of the the Pillar of Balance, now a spirit after being murdered by an unseen assailant. She informs Kain of his relation to the Pillars and that the only way for him to restore the balance is to seek out each guardian and kill them. The fate of Nosgoth may hang on Kain decisions.

Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain is a top-down game where the player controls the vampiric Kain. As a vampire, Kain is able to withstand sunlight, but is harmed by water. However, he is able to obtain several cursed abilities and spells such as being able to transform into a bat, wolf, and even a cloud mist respectively, as well as learning the ability to disguise himself from creatures of weaker mind. Kain is also fixated on murder and is a master of several ways to kill and destroy his opponents. As the enemies are slain in front of him, Kain may drink their blood to restore his health, which is always trickling away, representative of his insatiable craving. To aid in the slaughter of his enemies, Kain may equip different weapons and armor, each with its own unique properties.

Forums

Trivia

Cancelled Saturn release

Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain was to also be on the Sega Saturn.

Character names

Some of the Characters underwent name changes before the game was finished. Ariel was first called Adonathiel and Moebius was named Bridenal. Vorador's name was briefly changed to Infernum, but it was changed back.

Although it has never been stated officially, it's possible that Nosgoth is derived from Nosferatu, another name for vampires, and Goth or Gothic.

Chess sequence

One of the most important gameplay sequence that was cut in Blood Omen was the chess sequence that Vorador would have used to challenge Kain. In the words of the Silicon Knights themselves:

The chess match was a board with real people on it, which Vorador had set up to challenge Kain. Kain had to figure out which piece to move using the Control Mind spell, and, if he made a mistake, the pieces would come to life and attack him. The correct move was a classic chess checkmate

The sequence was cut because it was not working very well and the development cycle was nearing the end.

Cutscenes

Originally, there was an FMV depicting Kain's murder. It was supposed to be part of the opening cinematics tell the story of how Kain becomes a Vampire.

Graveyard

First, find the blood script in the mausoleum. Copy the symbols down on paper.
Go to the graveyard outside. Read the gravestones. Get your paper and pen ready and waste one hour of your time deciphering the code.
The symbols each represent the corresponding letters of the alphabet omitting the letters K, Q, and W.
You then can "read" the gravestones to see the names of some of the games' developers.

Legacy

The game's plot is actually the centerpiece of what in the sequels develops into an intricate vampire-time-travel-drama. Events from Blood Omen are constantly referred to in the following games, for example, the vampire Janos Audron, who is never encountered in Blood Omen and whose backstory merely adds flavour to a power-up, becomes a character of major importance in almost all sequels.

Lightning spell cave

Using the alphabet from the Nosgoth's Blood Script, you can translate the writing at the Lightning Spell cave. It says: "He will come when the moon is full and learn to call death from the sky".

Title

Blood Omen was originally going to be called "The Pillars of Nosgoth", due to the importance of the Pillars to the storyline.